Communicating Effectively with

your Boss
Wendy Hamilton Hoelscher
Learning and Organizational Development
 Objectives
 Understand what it means to manage up
and why it is important
 Diagnose your manager’s work style and
your own work style
 Develop strategies for managing your
manager
 Management Defined
Management is a discipline – an organized
body of knowledge and as such is
applicable everywhere – it is also “culture.”
Management is a social function and
embedded in a culture of values, customs,
and beliefs of an organization…
Peter
Drucker
 Best Boss, Worst Boss
Group 1: What were some of the qualities
and of quirks of the best
boss you ever had?

Group 2: What were some of the qualities

and quirks of the worst boss
you ever had?
 Managing up means …

focusing on the relationship with

your boss to obtain the best
results for you, your boss and
your organization
 The Managerial Conundrum
Managers are typically hired for their
technical competence and then
“rewarded” with managerial
responsibilities.
BUT ---
There is no “Management Fairy” to
make new managers “managers”
 Let’s Begin …
Think about your relationship with your current
boss…

– What works well

– What doesn’t work
– What keeps you awake at night
– What keeps your boss awake at night
 Unskilled at Boss Relationships
(from Lombardo and Eichinger)

 Not comfortable with bosses

 May be tense in boss’s presence
 May not be open to coaching or direction
from the boss
 Problems dealing comfortably with authority
 Poor boss relationship gets in the way of
personal productivity
 Skilled at Boss Relationships
(from Lombardo and Eichinger)

 Responds and relates well to bosses

 Would work harder for a good boss
 Is open to learning from bosses who are
good coaches and who provide latitude
 Likes to learn from those who have been
there before
 Easy to challenge and develop, comfortably
coach-able
Overused Skill – Boss Relationships
(from Lombardo and Eichinger)

 Over-dependence on bosses and high

status figures for advice and counsel
 May shut out other sources of feedback and
learning
 Picks the wrong boss to model
 Some Causes for Poor Boss
Relationships
 Boss doesn’t think you are as good as you think
you are
 You think the boss has the job you should
 Large gap in skills leading to undervaluing/ not
respecting the other (either direction)
 Mismatches in ethics, values and integrity
 Mismatches in management practices
 Mismatches in style, philosophy, pace and
motivation
 Poor communication – in both directions
Circle of Influence/Circle of
Concern

Circle of Concern

Circle of Influence
 Key Factors
1. Understanding your boss’s work style
2. Understanding your boss’s goals and
priorities
3. Understanding how your role links to your
manager’s work and organizational
success
 Management Styles: Logic
 Prefers detailed analyses and facts
 Be able to answer tough questions
 Explain processes and methodology
 Be correct!
 Management Style:
Visionary/Creative
 Prefer top and bottom line discussions
 Engaged through discussion, questions
 Brainstorm rather than data dump
 “Can’t be done” not in the vocabulary
 Emphasize positives
 Management Styles: Relationship
 Values connection and collaboration
 Discusses work and life outside work
 Be prepared to discuss how implementation
of an idea will impact the team
 Management Style: Ego
 Driven and competitive
 Show how ideas benefit the manager and/or
the team
 Will modify what you do to put own stamp
on the results
 Smells fear, be confident
Management Styles: Action Oriented
 Task focused
 Can do and will – more than others
 Everything a priority
 Diplomatically push back to get realistic
goals and timelines
Management Style: Perfectionist
 Values getting things done right with highest
quality
 Requests “do-overs”
 Have others look over your work before
handing it off
 Don’t take it personally
 Work Styles: Your Boss
 Formal or informal?
 Briefed in writing or brainstorming?
 Energized or annoyed by sidebars?
 Hands on or regular, informal updates?
 Energized or avoids conflict?
 Decisive or open-ended?
 Work Styles: You
 Formal or informal?
 Briefed in writing or brainstorming?
 Energized or annoyed by sidebars?
 Hands on or regular, informal updates?
 Energized or avoids conflict?
 Decisive or open-ended?
 Managing Up Speed Bars
 Understand your boss’s wants/needs
 Understand your wants/needs
 Agree to clear expectations
 Understand how you like to be managed
 Remember to deliver the good news
 Be appropriate but don’t sugar-coat bad news
 Pick your battles and words carefully
 Help manage time – yours and theirs
 You do have the power to make things better!
 The Triggers
What sets your boss off? What sets you off?
What are your boss’s hot What are your hot
buttons? buttons?
What does your boss do What do you do when a
when a hot button is hot button is triggered?
triggered?
 Some Advice from FYI
 No loose lips
 Depersonalize and be neutral
 Learn from the situation
 Realize it could be you
 Careers are made and broken on adversity
 Face the boss
 Strike a bargain with yourself to do your best
– your career will continue past this boss
 Keys to Managing a Rocky Boss
Relationship
 Work to leave behind the least amount of
long-term “noise” for yourself and the
organization.
 Keep your head down.
 Focus your communications with the boss
on work-specifics.
 Think of five ways to accomplish anything
and try them all!
 Access your network for performance help.
Putting it All Together: An Activity
1. Select one issue with your boss that, if
resolved, will make your work life better
2. Diagnose your boss and diagnose yourself
using work styles, management styles and
triggers
3. Identify ways to manage up to resolve this
issue
4. Identify one thing you can do immediately
to resolve your boss issue